Idaho, located in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States, was the forty-third state of America, admitted into the Union on July 3, 1890. The state’s capital and largest city is Boise. Idaho is the fourteenth largest state in the U.S. by area and the thirty-ninth most populous. Idaho is bordered by the states Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming and the country, Canada. The state’s major rivers are Snake River, Coeur d'Alene River, St. Joe River, St. Maries River and Kootenai River. Its major lakes are Lake Pend Oreille, American Falls Reservoir, Bear Lake and Coeur d'Alene Lake. The name for the residents of Idaho is Idahoans.
The origin of the name Idaho is unknown. The state’s nickname ‘The Gem State’ was receive due to its abundance of natural resources and scenic areas that include steep canyons rapids, snow-capped mountain ranges and vast lakes. Shoshone Falls plunges down rugged cliffs from a height greater than that of Niagara Falls and the waters of Snake River tear through Hells Canyon, the deepest canyon in America. Additionally, the mountains of Idaho contain deposits of cobalt, copper, gold, lead, silver, zinc and some rare materials including jade, jasper, opal, topaz, tourmaline and zircon.
Idaho’s state bird is the Mountain Bluebird and its state flower, the Syringa. The official flag was adopted in 1907. The flag has a blue field, framed with a yellow border. In the center of the blue field is the state seal. The seal illustrates a miner carrying a pick and wielding a shovel and a woman carrying the scales of justice. The seal also features a sheaf of grain, green grass, two full yellow cornucopias, a blue sky and an elk head on top of a shield, which pictures a river, settlers, mountainous land and a fir tree. Above the elk head is a white ribbon which reads the state motto, ‘Esto Perpetua” meaning ‘May it endure forever’.
The Native Americans of Idaho were much luckier than their counterparts in the eastern part of the United States. Idaho was only discovered by European men in 1805, by the Lewis and Clark expedition. This was long after Europeans had settled many of the Eastern states of America. Prior to the European arrival, the Native’s relied on hunting, gathering and fishing skills in order to survive. They also traded goods with nearby tribes. They lived in small family houses where woman were required to cook and gather the seeds and berries and men were responsible for hunting and making tools.
David Thompson established the first non-indigenous settlement in Idaho in 1809. It was located in Kullyspell House, on the shore of Lake Pend Oreille. It was set up for fur trading for the North West Company. Following this, in 1812 Donald Mackenzie, who worked for the Pacific Fur Company, set up a post near the present-day Lewiston. This operated for about one year, when North West Company bought out the company and then abandoned it.
The most famous Idaho war was the Nez Perce War, which occurred in 1876. The Americans were desperate for land and therefore declared that all the remaining Nez Perce were to relocate to the Lapwaii Reservation. The leader of Nez Perce tried to negotiate with the Americans, yet he yielded no success. The Nez Perce had no choice but to move to the Reservation. On the journey, war broke out when a group of Nez Perce killed some men at the Salmon River Valley. In retaliation the Americans sent one hundred soldiers to fight back. However the Americans were not successful, losing thirty-four soldiers in the battle, whereas the Nez Perce had only two injured men. Not wanting to spill any more blood, the Nez Perce continued journeying to the Reservation, however on the way they were attacked by Americans at the Clearwater River. This battle ended with a draw. When the Nez Perce continued their journey to the Reservation again, they thought there would be peace, yet they were once again attacked. More than eighty Nez Perce were killed including over fifty woman and children. Finally the Nez Perce were taken to a reservation in Oklahoma rather than the agreed Lapwaii Reservation. It took the Nez Perce leader eight years to get the government to move the tribe to the Lapwaii Reservation in Idaho or the Colville Reservation in Washington.
Prior to statehood, Idaho’s economy had been largely involved in metal mining, however once it became a state, Idaho moved toward agriculture, forest products and tourism. Nowadays, the major industries are mining, lumber, food processing, chemical products, electronics manufacturing and the agriculture of barley, potatoes, sugar beets and wheat. The state produces nearly one third of the potatoes grown in the United States.
The climate in Idaho varies quite a bit. The winters are not as cold as some people would expect. The northern part of the state is influenced by the maritime. In the summer however, the state experiences quite peculiar weather with wet summers and dry winters. Hot summer days are tempered by the low relative humidity and cooler evenings of the summer months. The winter months are cold, however it is very unusual for Idahoans to experience weather below zero.
Idaho is home to some 1.5 million residents. In 2008, the state had an estimated population of 1, 523, 816 people. Idaho had strong population percentage increases in the year 2000-2003 ranking the state as the sixth fastest –growing state in America. This rank was pushed up to third in the year 2004-2005. The center of population is located in Custer County, in the town of Stanley. The main religions in the state are Protestant and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Idaho is home to ski resorts and snow sports are identified with the state. Central Idaho is one of North America’s oldest ski resorts. Sun Valley, where the world’s first chairlifts were installed is also quite exciting. In the summer whitewater rafting and kayaking are the states major pastimes. Hell’s Canyon and the Salmon River boast some of North America’s finest whitewater.
Source:
Wikipedia
telephone answering service, live answering service, medical answering service
